How Different - Obama and Modi's Phones!

Former Minister for External Affairs, Salman Khurshid, when asked about US Snooping, said, "They are only collecting meta data".

He certainly did not understand meta data and did not bother to think why USA would collect it. So much for the thinking capacity of our ministers.

And now, this one takes the cake. It is called "NaMo App's 'My Network'"

In my previous article here, I had mentioned about the purpose of the snooping that USA and the "Five Eyes" do. On page 149 of the paperback edition of Glen Greenwald's book, "No Place to Hide" he quotes an intelligence document which, says, "Shipments of computer netwrok devices (servers, routers etc.) being delivered to our targets through out the world are intercepted (emphasis in original). Next, they are redirected to a secret location(emphasis in original) where Tailored Access Operations / Access Operations (AO - S326) employees, with the support of Remote Operations Center (S321), enable the installation of beacon implants directly into our targets' electronic devices. These devices are then repackaged and placed back into transit to the original destination. All this happens with teh support of Intelligence Community partners and the technical wizards in TAO. Eventually, the implanted device connects back to the NSA infrastructure.

With "NaMo's App" US intelligence agencies have access not only what our PM is saying to people, but also what the people are telling him and worse - ALL government departments and minsitries would be falling over each other to post to the network.

Perhaps, it would help if one has the Pakistan spy - Mehmood Akhtar accompanying you. After all, Both Pakistan and India (India followed Pakistan in this) are using the same US (now French) company for biometric solutions.

How nice to know that (the equipment of ) a French or Portuguese private company can decide who enters our airports!

The Beginning of the End of UID / "Aadhaar"

​There has been a debit card security breach in a large number of banks.

It was kept under wraps until it could no longer be hidden from public glare. Why?

One can run, but not hide for ever. The truth will out, and it has.

There is only one thing that could be responsible for this – it goes by a popular delusional brand name, "Aadhaar".

It does not work, because biometric recognition is inherently fallible.

They know it, yet the “scratch-back” club said it was good for KYC (Know Your Customer) norms for banks.

I had written to the former governor of RBI. He did not so much even acknowledge it.

Now the chickens have come home to roost.

The cover up plan (disaster management) will get on over drive.

Are we an IT Super Power or an IT Super Fool?

Any fool would know that if one uses a number, 12 digit or even more, unique, random or otherwise, as the index and access password (and if the number is available to all and sundry) for any database, then anyone would be able to breach its security.

In fact, there is no need to breach, access is always available.

The loss of a few million debit cards and cash withdrawals through them is but a minor hiccup, the proverbial iceberg tip.

Damage the UID / "Aadhaar" scheme could do is unimaginable, expect to its fundamentalist faithful.

One report said that the debit cards were used from China.

Why did the banks remain silent for 6 weeks?

The malware is reportedly through a vendor of National Payment Corporation of India, a private body (and according to the present dispensation – private is better than public) which, uses and swears by "Aadhaar" for financial transaction.

When will they ever learn, if ever?

​There has been a debit card security breach in a large number of banks.

It was kept under wraps until it could no longer be hidden from public glare. Why?

One can run, but not hide for ever. The truth will out, and it has.

There is only one thing that could be responsible for this – it goes by a popular delusional brand name, "Aadhaar".

It does not work, because biometric recognition is inherently fallible.

They know it, yet the “scratch-back” club said it was good for KYC (Know Your Customer) norms for banks.

I had written to the former governor of RBI. He did not so much even acknowledge it.

Now the chickens have come home to roost.

The cover up plan (disaster management) will get on over drive.

Are we an IT Super Power or an IT Super Fool?

Any fool would know that if one uses a number, 12 digit or even more, unique, random or otherwise, as the index and access password (and if the number is available to all and sundry) for any database, then anyone would be able to breach its security.

In fact, there is no need to breach, access is always available.

The loss of a few million debit cards and cash withdrawals through them is but a minor hiccup, the proverbial iceberg tip.

Damage the UID / "Aadhaar" scheme could do is unimaginable, expect to its fundamentalist faithful.

One report said that the debit cards were used from China.

Why did the banks remain silent for 6 weeks?

The malware is reportedly through a vendor of National Payment Corporation of India, a private body (and according to the present dispensation – private is better than public) which, uses and swears by "Aadhaar" for financial transaction.

The actions of Israel and India make a study in contrasts on how the military and civilian governments of the two nations deal with military action against hostile neighbors.

India refuses to disclose details of "Surgical Strikes".

Israel holds public inquiries to evaluate military and civilian leadership.

In July 1948, while Israel’s War of Independence was still going on, the Government established a commission staffed by its leaders from across the political spectrum to hear angry army officers about the government and the military’s conduct and what was believed to be Ben-Gurion’s micromanagement.(Ben-Gurion was Israel’s first Prime Minister.)

Are Israelis stupid, less patriotic than us? And we more intelligent and efficient than they?

Let’s take a look at the ground realities.

Israel has a population of 8.5 million.

One of the smallest nations in the world, its area is only 8000 square miles or about 20,000 square kilometers. That is about the size of Rhode Island and only slightly larger than the Canary Islands! It is only 260 miles at its longest, has a 112-mile coastline, 60 miles at its widest, and between 3 and 9 miles at its narrowest!

Arab nations with whom Israel in conflict ever since it became a nation, number 366, million.

Yet, Israel has won ALL its wars with the Arabs.

How does Israel do this? How do its Defense Forces (IDF) function?

A lot has been said about our “surgical strikes” and people asking for proof of damage inflicted on Pak.

Some say that such questioning is a dishonor to the Indian Armed Forces.

Some others say and perhaps, think that such disclosure could give away our military secrets.

We have a lot learn from Israel in this respect. So, let’s see how Israel deal with its armed forces and government in victory or defeat as far as information to the public is concerned.

The excerpts here are taken from the book by Dan Senor and Saul Singer titled, “Start-up Nation”.

In Israel there is a “debrief” every day, when all ranks sit down to deconstruct the day.

“After each of IDF engaged in far reaching structural reforms based on --- rigorous debate.”

“[A] even in victory, --- self-examination followed by an overhaul of the IDF. Senior officials have actually been fired after a successful (emphasis is mine) war.”

“[It] ----- after --- the 1973 Yom Kippur War, the 1982 Lebanon War and the 2006 Lebanon War – there were full-blown public commissions of inquiry that evaluated the country’s military and civilian leaders.”

Evidently, transparency and accountability to the people of both military and civilian establishments, through objective public evaluation of performance, is the key to Israel’s success.